A top barrister has sparked fury after saying that men should be immune from prosecution for rape if they have sex with a woman who is drunk.

Top barrister David Osborne has provoked fury with his controversial remarks

Rape victims reacted with fury after barrister David Osborne made the incendiary comments in a blog post titled 'SHE WAS GAGGING FOR IT'.

The married father-of-four used his blog to argue that "red-bloodied males who are out on the rut" should not be prosecuted for rape if a woman has been drinking or taking drugs.

He wrote: "I have always found it distasteful and unattractive the suggestion that as the victim was blind drunk she therefore unable to give her consent to sex, or more to the point, she gave her consent which she would not have given had she been sober.

"In my book, consent is consent, blind drunk or otherwise, and regret after the event cannot make it rape.

"I have a very simple solution which I hope you will agree is fair.

“If the complainant (I do not refer to her as the victim) was under the influence of alcohol or drugs, or both, when she was ‘raped’, this provides the accused with a complete defence.

"End of story and a victory for fairness, moderation and common sense!”

IG

Mr Osborne made the incendiary comments in a blog post on his website

The extraordinary rant came in response to new police guidelines which state that men should have to prove that a woman consented to sex when defending themselves against an allegation of rape.

Sarah Green, director of End Violence Against Women Coalition, said: “I find it hard to believe this is not some kind of sick joke or a parody.

“It is ridiculous. He is suggesting the opposite of the law.

“The justice system exists to punish and deter perpetrators. The guy is a barrister and there’s no way he doesn’t know all this.

“What a luxury to be able to make light of a very serious offence which affects 85,000 women who are raped in England and Wales every year.

“It’s not a joke if you work with survivors.”

Her criticism was echoed by Women Centre national lead Clare Jones, who was awarded a CBE in 2012 for her work with vulnerable women.

She said: “It’s appalling.

“We are deeply shocked that even today, in 2015, someone can seriously suggest that the violent crime of rape could be provided with a complete defence if a woman was under the influence of alcohol or drugs at the time.

“Is Mr Osborne suggesting that women need to be teetotal in public places in order to protect themselves?

“I think most people would agree that women have the right to live their lives free from the fear of attack, rape and violence both inside and outside of the home. “

The 71-year-old lawyer has appeared in scores of rape trials during his 40-year career and earned the nickname of the Barrister Bard after delivering his final speech to a trial jury entirely in verse.

In his remarks he also criticised Director of Public Prosecutions Alison Saunders, who is behind the latest rape guidance reforms, asking himself: "Is it just me, or are women taking over the world?"

The whole thing is over slanted in favour of drunken victims and against lads who chance their arm

Barrister David Osborne

He wrote: “My considerable experience tells me that there are basically two defences to an allegation of rape: either ‘it wasn’t me gov’, or ‘she was gagging for it’.

“It is also correct in my own experience that most of those accused of rape are acquitted, not simply as a result of the brilliance of my advocacy, but because the jury did not believe beyond a reasonable doubt that the victim did not consent.

“Into this squirming sack of grubby emotions steps Alison Saunders, who is apparently the Director of Public Prosecutions, so she should know better.

“She has decided, or rather it has been decided for her, that anybody who makes an allegation of rape must be believed, and everything possible in the trial process must be bent towards the conviction of the accused.

“Rape trials from now on are no longer to be prosecution led, but conviction led, and when you add into the mix that prison sentences for rape are getting longer and longer, the opportunities for a serious miscarriage of justice are self-evident. Or should that be ‘Ms.Carriage’?”

PA

The barrister criticised Director of Public Prosecutions Alison Saunders

The senior barrister defended the comments today and insisted his “solution” on consent in rape cases would not leave drunken women without protection in law.

He told the Mirror: “The protection in law that they have got seems to me to be twofold.

“Number One: Don’t go out in the first place.

“Or Number Two: If you do go out don’t get rat-arsed. If you get rat arsed, I’m sorry, you are asking for trouble.

“You’ve seen the news sequences of girls who, regardless of the weather, have their backsides sticking out of their dresses and their tits hanging out of the same dress.

"Wandering around the streets, staggering around and then wondering at the end of all that why somebody has, if you like, taken advantage of them.

“And so in those circumstances I don’t see for the life of me why the law should now be slanted - as I perceive it with Alison Saunders - towards the victim and therefore against the accused.”

He added: "The whole thing is over slanted in favour of drunken victims and against lads who chance their arm.

“I don’t call them victims. I said that these are complainants.

“They are not victims because victims in my opinion are synonymous with people who have been taken advantage of.

“That is the grey area you and I are discussing. Does a bloke who siddles up to a girl: ‘Hello sweetheart, fancy a quickie’ or whatever they say these days - is he taking advantage of her and is she therefore a victim because she is under the influence.

“I don’t see that, I really don’t.

“I tell you what would drop the rape statistics would be if girls covered up, dressed appropriately and stopped drinking themselves legless.”

Police forces throughout England and Wales have been issued with new guidance on rape cases to clarify how a person can consent to sex.

Announcing the new guidelines last week, Mrs Saunders said: “Consent to sexual activity is not a grey area - in law it is clearly defined and must be given fully and freely.

“It is not a crime to drink, but it is a crime for a rapist to target someone who is no longer capable of consenting to sex though drink.”